It's more about the competition. Those numbers are really low seeing who his playing against. Personally I've accepted that JV will never be the great two way Center that we all want. He'll always need a defensive anchor at the 4 or 5.

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While I don't think JV will ever be an elite defender at the 5 spot, I do feel he will be slightly better than average. Strong enough to defend post-ups one on one, and agile enough to hedge and recover on pick and rolls. If he can learn defensive rotations as a team player he will not be a liability at that end.

Due to his potential offensive ability, I expect him to be one of the top all around centers in the league in the next few years.

It's more about the competition. Those numbers are really low seeing who his playing against. Personally I've accepted that JV will never be the great two way Center that we all want. He'll always need a defensive anchor at the 4 or 5.

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Tough to block shots and coral long rebounds against a lot of 3s and long 2s.

JV is just turned 22. If you've already placed limits on him then any improvements will surely be a welcome surprise, no?

aren't you just looking at opposing FG attempts at the rim? plus that data is per game, which jonas definitely plays less minutes than those 3 guys.

Yeah, better to look at opponent FG% at the rim. If you narrow to players who a) played 30+ games and b) defended at least 7 FGA's at the rim per game (Jonas defended 8.9), Jonas is 15th (Amir is 8th, Cousins is 14th, Drummond is 18th). There are 26 players in the sample, so Jonas is sitting right about average already.

Who's stuck defending all the blow by's? Jonas is the last line of defence and is often stuck doing all the dirty work. If the rotations aren't perfect his man is left open. Fives have the hardest position in any defensive scheme. He'll get better. He may not block a lot of shots, but as long as the shots are altered then he is doing his job. I think shot blocking is totally over rated. The true sign of defence is contesting shots, making each attempt more difficult, or even forcing them to pass because a shot just isn't there.

Who's stuck defending all the blow by's? Jonas is the last line of defence and is often stuck doing all the dirty work. If the rotations aren't perfect his man is left open. Fives have the hardest position in any defensive scheme. He'll get better. He may not block a lot of shots, but as long as the shots are altered then he is doing his job. I think shot blocking is totally over rated. The true sign of defence is contesting shots, making each attempt more difficult, or even forcing them to pass because a shot just isn't there.

Never mind the fact that Ross, JJ, Fields, and likely Bruno will be guarding the better wing.

Regarding bold: totally agree. You miss the block and your man is likely putting in the putback. Being able to contest and still be in a position to rebound is the ultimate goal.

It's more about the competition. Those numbers are really low seeing who his playing against. Personally I've accepted that JV will never be the great two way Center that we all want. He'll always need a defensive anchor at the 4 or 5.

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C'mon, Marc Gasol is thought of as one of the best defensive players in the league and he doesn't have the athletecism that JV does. Granted Gasol has a higher basketball IQ than JV now as well as when he first came into the league, but more experience will solve that issue for JV. He's going to be good as long as he stays hungry.

C'mon, Marc Gasol is thought of as one of the best defensive players in the league and he doesn't have the athletecism that JV does. Granted Gasol has a higher basketball IQ than JV now as well as when he first came into the league, but more experience will solve that issue for JV. He's going to be good as long as he stays hungry.

Don't forget gasol was 24 when he came into league and will be 30 this year. Where will JV be in another 2 and 7/8 years? I can't wait to find out.

Don't forget gasol was 24 when he came into league and will be 30 this year. Where will JV be in another 2 and 7/8 years? I can't wait to find out.

I agree. Experience is a big part of what improves basketball IQ, so no need to put him in a box and say he'll never be this or that. 5 years from now if he hasn't shown improvement then it's a lot more likely that he may never.